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A Different Type of Water Drain..problem

willow

willow

Regular Contributor
Guys and Gals..

I have posted this same problem over on the Boat Repair-Plumbing section but thought I would drop it in here as it seems to me. being rather bias, that the "Crusader" guys and gals are a little more proactive when faced with a question....so here goes.

I have a 41 foot Gibson. The aft stateroom has its own shower. The drain looked pretty corroded so I thought I would replace it by just unscrewing the top part.....it fell apart.

Believe it or not the drain is a simple 2 inch funnel type drain fixture with a 1 inch sanitation hose connected to it which is then routed through 2 massive stringers to the drain pump located in the centre of the bilge.

The "chrome" top which one sees when in the shower was initially screwed to the drain funnel coming up from the bottom, (sorta just like a household shower drain) but the two pieces were in pretty bad shape..they were, in fact, beyond salvage and crumbled.

I now have no drain and the really difficult part is that there is no access to the bottom of the shower !!!!! There are no access panels anywhere and the shower is held in by a ton of ss screws in a aluminum molding that goes all around the shower.

Does anyone know if there are any shower drains that can be fitted by dropping the entire piece through the drain hole and then perhaps screwing the piece down to the fibreglass shower bottom????.,. I can 'fish' another drain hose from the pump over to the drain hole and connect it OUTSIDE the drain hole and then drop it in the hole and secure it with ss screws and putty.....Is that an acceptable fix or do I have to dismantle the entire shower and have the top (chrome piece) screwed onto the flanged bottom piece, installed from below to ensure a seal?????

Just doing winterizing up here now.....Great White North rec boat season is pretty much over:mad::eek:
 
Don,

I did no research but just off the top of my head, If you can bond in a replacement drain with hose already run thru ...you may have an easy fix. Stuff like 3M 4200 will hold well and with frequent use, even if you had to replace it every 3 years or so, you can pry it up ...clean it and glue another one down....Of course others will chime in with possibly something made just for this....can you post a picture of the drain hole?

Most of those type cutouts have a slight recess ....does yours?
 
Yup, there is a slight recess around the edge of the hole...The hole would be 2 inches in diameter and the recess would be about 1/2 inch out from it edges all the way around. From the recess the shower floor slopes upward. I think we are on the same page here....I could just cut the old bottom part of the drain off...it would just drop in the unacessible part of the bilge, pull the hose up and attach it to the new drain, put a good bonding agent around the edge and it would fit around the top of the recessed part of the hole...is that where you are going??? (now to find a drain with a 3 inch diameterthat has the ability to accept a clamped on 1 inch sani-hose!!);)
 
Yes...thinking the same thing. Hey after a forgetful month of a 10lb weight sitting on the fitting while it "dries", it should be good to go for quite a while. I'll stay on the look out for a fitting like this and if I see one, I will let you know. One thing, I remember using a drain fitting in a darkroom sink once years ago and since it was a small portable "but permanent" installation, I had set it up with a clamp and tubing to a household drain. It used 1 1/4" tubing. IF you have enough space below the shower fitting, you may be able to use a step down adapter to go from whatever size you start with to the 1" hose you are using in a very few short steps. I have used these adapters only last year so they are available. Had an extra un-used large strainer with bigger hose going to my A/C water pump and stepped it down from 1" to 5/8" with one of those
 
Situations like this are where the old fashion plumbing supply stores can help you. The people behind the counter there have seen everything. Between them and the trades people customers who are very helpful, you will leave with a solution. The Lowes & Depots just don't have the talent you find in the places that cater to the trade. Failing that you could always blow a hole in the shower & use a deck access cover.
 
"""Failing that you could always blow a hole in the shower & use a deck access cover. ""

Funny how we miss the obvious !! Thank you for the suggestion..it is certainly worth consideration !!!:cool:
 
Don....most household shower drains are 4" in diameter at the top and are made to go into 2" PVC. I'm thinking you may have to look into shower accessories that are made for the trailer or mobile trailer industry. Seems to me they would need to be set up simiarly to yours, most likely that's where the manufacturer got yours. I know this won't solve your installation problem, but at least you'll have the right parts to play with. You'll probably still have to epoxy the flange down to get it to work. Just wondering.....? is there a step up into the shower where you maybe could put an access door ? Then you could attach the drain the way it was meant to be done .
 
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